Reclaiming Ana’s Voice

The maid that wasn’t allowed to speak did something different the next morning. When Ana walked

into the house, she paused at the doorway. Her heart beat fast, like it used to

when she was a child standing in front of a classroom. Then she took a breath and said,

softly but clearly, “Good morning.” The woman of the house looked up from her phone.

“Good morning,” she replied. Nothing else happened. No anger. No correction.

No punishment. Ana stood there, almost surprised that the world didn’t end.

That day, she spoke again. Just once. Then again the next day.

Simple words. Polite sentences. Small pieces of herself returning. She learned something